Rep. Evans idea to help homeless is "out of box" thinking

Homelessness is not unique to big cities, it is a significant issue throughout the entire country, including Oregon.

Being homeless amplifies struggles to find work, it hinders recovery or treatment for mental illnesses and substance abuse. It puts Oregon’s children at risk.

Changes are being made, but Oregon’s cities still have a long way to go in housing its homeless population. Recovering from homelessness is not a one-solution fix, but because of the work primarily by Democrats like Rep. Paul Evans, the Legislature has made progress in helping to alleviate the problem.

Through improved efforts in outreach and significant increases in public funding, the situation is beginning to improve. Rep. Paul Evans has an novel proposal to further help improve the homeless situation.

He suggests that the governor mobilize Oregon’s National Guard to build temporary housing. These structures could later be used for emergency response and recovery efforts once homelessness has been eradicated.

We should commend Rep. Evans' leadership in “thinking outside the box.”